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Joining Hands To Touch Lives . . . . . . Fraternalism for the Family and Our Nation
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Official Publication of the SPJST, originally chartered as the Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas, in 1897
BENEVOLENCE
HUMANITY
VOLUME 92 NUMBER 41
BROTHERHOOD
Postmaster: Please Send Form 3579 to: SPJST Home Office, P. 0. Box 100, Temple, Texas 76503 ISSN-07458800
October 27, 2004
eat:Nations: What MUST Means to e "Lodge 88, Houston Family Memories" By Rhonda Lathrop Bell Lodge 88, Houston SPJST Lodge 88, Houston holds more than a lifetime of cherished memories and history for my family. My grandparents Frank and Mary Tilich were the first in my family to become members. They in turn helped their daughter—my mom, Dorothy Tilich Lathrop—to become a member. When I was born, my mom and grandparents made sure I was a member, too. Now it's my turn to share the SPJST with my first child who was recently born. My memories of the SPJST are emotional ones that vary from great happiness to great sadness, and even some resentment. My grandparents and my mom loved SPJST and attended all the functions, events, meetings, and conventions. They lived and breathed SPJST. The other members of Lodge 88 were considered a part of their family and consisted of many lifelong friends. My grandparents held officer positions in the lodge, and my mom wrote lodge columns for the Vestnik for several years in the early 70s. I had always been told that when I was five years old, I could join the youth club and participate in its activities. However, when I was four years old, my parents moved from Houston to the small town of Commerce, Texas. The nearest SPJST lodges were one and one-half hours to two hours away. My resentment is that I never had the opportunity to participate in the SPJST
youth club or become an active member of SPJST. My mom experienced great sadness when she moved from Houston. She felt ripped apart from her lodge family, and her parents. Dad did not make much money. My parents were hard-pressed to pay bills, and long trips to Houston cost money. So we did not make the trip very often—usually only once or twice a year. When I was growing up, Mom always had a subscription to the Vestnik, and we read the paper together every week. And, every week, she cried. She read about what her friends were doing. She missed them, and she missed being a part of the activities. She felt as if she would never be an active member of the lodge again; and unfortunately, she was right. Cancer took her almost five years ago. She read the Vestnik until the week she died, and we had an SPJST marker put on her gravestone. Yet the best memories I have of the SPJST are happy memories. Those memories mainly include my grandparents. I did get to go the lodge a few times when I was growing up—usually for Easter and Christmas. I remember my grandparents shuffled me around everywhere with them. When I was six years old, Poppa (my grandfather) snuck me into the Blue Room with him. He was bartending that night. The Men's Club was (Continued on page 3.)
Rhonda Lathrop Belt, right, is pictured with her mother, Dorothy Tilich Lathrop, and her Poppa, Frank L. Tilich. The photo was taken in 1994 when Rhonda was on leave from the Navy at Mr. Tilich's home in Houston.
First in Fayetteville Lodge 1, Fayetteville Youth Club members rode the SPJST Float through the Lickskillet Parade in Fayetteville on October 17. The float received the First Place Best Decorated Entry award.
Lodge 17, New Tabor Member Joseph Haisler, Sr. Achieves Grand Age of 96 The
SPJST congratulates Brother Joseph Bernard Haisler, Sr., a member of Lodge 17, New Tabor, who celebrated his 96th birthday on October 2, 2004. Brother Joseph is now entitled to all SPJST member benefits with no further dues or assessments required. Joseph was born October 2, 1908, on the family farm east of Caldwell in Burleson County, Texas to Emil Haisler and Anna Hejl Haisler. Joe married Rosalie Marek on October 15, 1934, in Seymour, Baylor County, Texas. She passed away on February 22, 1998. Joe and Rosalie had three childrenJ.B. Haisler and wife, Shirley, Jr., Melvin Haisler and wife, Joneen, and Mary Ann McCutheon and husband, Bob, all of Denton. Joe was a farmer all of his life until retirement. He participated with the Texas Agriculture Extension Service in improving his farming. He also allowed the county agent to come out and have experimental plots on his 250-acre farm. Joe's siblings include William (Bill) who died in 1960; Henry who died in 1908; Edward who died in 2004; and Emil, still living; sisters, Albina Lomica, who died in 1975; Annie Faust, who died in 1982, and Vlasta, who died in 1983.
Joe recalls how hot it was in 1925. It was so dry that church congregations went to his father's farm for their baptisms because he had a deep stock tank which was one of the few places that did not dry up in that year. The corn was very sparse and they made no hay so they fed cows cotton hulls and everyday went to the woods and cut trees to feed the leaves to the cows. Joe also remembers a- rare late year freeze with snow in May when he was a boy. The corn was already about knee-high and was a total loss. During his retirement years, Joe has spent many hours everyday at the Denton Senior Citizen Center participating in activities and events. One year, he was the champion pool player and runner-up for several years. He also won the district bowling championship and was the winner in "42" and spades competitions a number of times. Joe loves to play the domino game "42". His son, Melvin, takes him to the Senior Citizens Center in Denton almost every weekday to play. Joe will be presented his SPJST 96year honoree certificate at a family reunion at the Caldwell Senior Citizens Center on Saturday, October 23. —SPJST-